A-Tisket, A-Tasket

More than once I have addressed specific pre-made dishes available at the grocery store, hot and ready to go or at the very least in need only of heating up. Past loved items have included the deli sandwich (recently turned to again in a moment of weakness), the burrito (which I may in fact have yet to write about) and the ever-reliable can of generic ravioli. None of them, as ephemeral as some can be, quite generate the excitement that I feel for another item.

It's a basket of random items, really. Many if not most are fried foods, ranging from chicken to onion rings and including all the things in between. There can also be things like green bean casserole and potatoes au gratin. No two are composed of exactly the same items. It's a challenge sometimes to decide between two such baskets, comparing and contrasting the offerings within them. The only thing assured is that they measure at the same volume.

It sure is a lot of food, and heavy food at that. Try as I might, I never can seem to eat it all in a sitting. I get to that point where I know I'm stuffed and want to eat more. I eat one thing more than I should, realize the error of my ways and leave the rest for the next day. I truly seem to wake up eagerly with a spring in my step knowing there's such a thing as that awaiting me once I begin my day. Not all of it holds up well after a microwaving, but then you must be strategic in what you eat first.

The tragic downside, as with a lot of this stuff, is that it is no more reliably available than a deadbeat dad. Every once in a while, there it will be. It tries to compensate for its long absence with an overabundance of food, but in truth it's for the best that it's there so seldom. I would die if it could be had every day, for I never can resist it. Who could live eating that more than once in a blue moon? It's probably unhealthy that I eat it as much as I do, but you don't live forever on a diet- it only must seem like forever.